Apple Vision Pro gets big upgrades with visionOS 26
visionOS 26 is here with anchored spatial widgets, PSVR 2 controller support, shared Spatial Experiences, and improved Personas.
Apple Vision Pro may not be the star of WWDC, but its operating system has been. visionOS can now be seen as design inspiration across the Apple ecosystem, but visionOS 26 was still a big update in the crammed event.
When visionOS launched alongside the Apple Vision Pro in 2024, it was only available for a few months before visionOS 2 arrived. Now, a year later, Apple has taken everything it has learned from having the hardware in the wild and applied some of it to the operating system.
The Home View can finally be organized with folders. Also, Control Center has been rethought again.
The Photos app has improved with new conversion features. Spatial photos are now scenes with 3D effects that let users feel like they can look around inside a photo.
visionOS 26 brings anchored widgets that stay put even after a restart. Image source: Apple
Apple changed the design of the compatible iPhone and iPad app icons, placing them in a transparent bubble. A new Widgets app was introduced, but no compatible apps were updated to visionOS native, at least as of beta 1.
Users can pin widgets to walls and surfaces. So, widgets will appear while moving throughout a home. Widgets for Calendar, Clock, Photos, and more are included.
Widgets placed in a room are anchored to the wall or furniture, appearing when you look at them. If you take off or even restart the Apple Vision Pro, those widgets reappear without need to place them every time.
Spatial Personas are much more realistic. Image source: Apple
Spatial Personas are much more realistic. Also, users can share Spatial Environments and view objects in an app together.
If you’re hanging out or working with someone that also has an Apple Vision Pro, you can share in a space. Watch a movie, view a 3D scene, or various apps as if you’re both wearing the same headset.
visionOS 26 lets users experience content together in the same space. Image source: Apple
visionOS 26 also adds support for 180-degree, 360-degree, and wide field-of-view content from Insta360, GoPro, and Canon, while new enterprise APIs allow organizations to create spatial experiences unique to visionOS. It allows the 2D content to be viewed properly within the spatial setting, using your head as a camera in a 360-degree view, for example.
Apple also included the rumored look-to-scroll feature. Users can adjust scroll speed and other details in settings.
The already-packed keynote may not include every detail about visionOS 26. Expect Apple to share specific feature lists and more in press releases following the keynote.
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